Child of the Night Prologue
by Darksage95
Summary: Prologue to an upcoming story and sequel to Armageddon. 16 year old Alessa suddenly wakes up to pain around her body. What started as cramps soon turned into something more. All her life, she wanted answers as to who she was and where she came from. Now...her journey begins.


**This is just the prologue to an upcoming story. I know, Armageddon is not done, but technically, it is. I just need to type it all up and I've been busy lately. Anyway, here is a sneak peek into the sequel. I do not own Gargoyles or Teen Titans. Enjoy!**

Pain. Pain that was all I could feel at this moment. I sat up from my lying position on my bed as if I woke up from a bad dream. First they started out like cramps, and then they intensified. My entire body was burning, as if I walked into a pit of fire. Yet at the same time, my being shook like ice was around me. My vision became hazy and black spots appeared in my line of sight. Soon I was blind, and I whimpered like a frightened animal in a cage.

"What's going on? What's happening!?" I groaned as I held my pillow close to my chest for comfort.

Then, as if it wouldn't get any worse, the burning sensation around my body doubled. I was on fire, or at least it felt like it. I screamed in agony and buried my face in my pillow, praying for the pain to stop. But my agonizing screams prevented me from making a proper prayer. At that moment, the muscles in my back felt as if they were being stretched. For once, I wished I was wrong.

My back muscles were being pulled, no, not pulled, they were growing! I could feel two small horns push out from beneath my skin like rapid growing tumors. The horns broke through the skin similar to a spear breaking the ice surface. In two pushes, the two horns broke out and the ends split into three fingerlike appendages. I screamed in anguish as the transformation went on. Immediately after, the pulling of my muscles jutted out of my back and expanded. The base of where the horns grew then thinned out, turning into some sort of membrane. I was in too much suffering to feel my back and do something irrational such as pushing the growths back in. All I could do was muffle my screams in my pillow.

Just when I couldn't take any more, the pain in my back was receding. The crooked-like spears slowed until they stopped growing. The burning in my back eased up and the only thing that followed it were the familiar cramps from before.

"It's stopping…" I thought to myself.

I removed the pillow from my face and took an exasperated sigh of relief. Curious as to what happened, I put my right hand over my shoulder blade in an attempt to ease the cramps. I slowly moved my cold and clammy hands to the right furthest base of my neck when I suddenly felt a leathery and coarse protrusion. Shocked, I pulled my hand away, and quickly felt the other side.

"What in the? What is this!?" I cried in fear.

Tears began to form in my eyes as I tried to put together what has happened to me. I feared of what I would see if I looked at what has grown on my back. A voice in my mind was telling me to see what has happened to me yet I tried to ignore that sense. I wanted to go back to sleep and say that I had horrible back cramps and this was a bad dream. I shut my eyes, thought carefully, and made my decision.

I slammed my fists on my bed and looked behind me. I expected to see a couple of spears imbedded on my back, but I was incorrect. These things were not supposed to be real, and I was definitely not the correct species to have them. My posterior side still had cramps, so I instinctively flexed my arms back and forth. I tried to stifle a gasp and my eyes widened as I saw the protrusions flex in close to my body, and then reach their full extended shape. It was then that I could clearly see what these things were. The shapes were triangular-like and, about four feet long, eight if you count from one side to the other and a foot tall from the base to the three pronged wingtips. What I thought to be crooked spears turned out to be arm-like projections in the form of flexed arms. Beneath those shapes was a smooth, yet a half a centimeter thick membrane. The membrane started then ended from the base of the arm shapes to the very tips. I could not see the color very well, but I would think they were tan, almost crimson colored actually. It was from these observations that I finally formed the word to describe these things.

"Wings. These are wings," I spoke in a soft tone. "But how? And why did this happen to me?"

Just then, a knock came from my door that led to the outside world.

"Alessa, are alright? I heard you screaming from the other side of the camp," my mentor calmly asked me even though I could sense worry in her.

"I'm okay…I just…had a bad dream," I told her as I tried to hide my fears from her. At the same time, I got out of my bed and was creeping to my window. I did not want my own mentor to see me like this. I was, after all, now a hideous creature of the night.

On my right next to the window was a mirror that showed my whole body. I looked intently at it expecting to see a gruesome, malformed monster looking back at me. Nothing has changed much save for a few features. My face was the same but the irises in my eyes were more of a purple hue rather than a brown. Then there were two small horns on my temples that lined alongside my hair like the end of a crown. I wasn't ugly; I was beautiful, but still a freak of nature.

"Everything's fine," I added with a stressed smile. "I guess…" I thought afterwards.

"Honey, you don't sound okay. I know you. I'm coming in," my mentor, Elektra, replied and she turned the knob on my door.

"Wait! Please don't come in! I said I'm fine!" I warned her as the door opened.

I didn't want her to see me like this. What would she think of me? Alessa, the fourteen year old girl who's now some sort of batgirl? I was backing to the window when I accidentally backed way too far. I let out a yelp and fell through the window. There were two things I was grateful for. One, my cabin was at ground level so that broke my fall, and two, my newly formed wings did not get caught as there was enough room to squeeze through. I quickly got on my feet and ran from the camp and into the woods nearby.

As I ran through the forest, I quickly noticed that my speed has increased as well. I would have to say that I was as fast as an Olympic runner on a sprint! Keeping this in mind, I wondered what other powers I had gained from this transformation. Still, I did not want anyone else to see me, so I kept running.

A few minutes had past and my side muscles began to ache. I stopped my sprint and knelt down to catch my breath. If not for my increased speed, I would have been found by my mentor and my fellow students by now. I didn't even want to think of their reactions when they saw me. With that, I embraced the looming trees and the chirping crickets around me.

"If I had already gained wings and the ability to run faster, what else have I gained?" I asked myself in curiosity. "I suppose I can try flying…"

With that said, I flapped my wings rapidly in an attempt to lift off the ground. I tried for three times and nothing happened.

"Well that didn't work…" I sighed in exhaustion.

I tried a few more times until I nearly collapsed out of fatigue. I screamed in frustration and dug my nails into the tree next to me. I was curious and shocked that I did that and I pulled my hand back to investigate it for any splinters. Amazingly, there weren't any. However, I was surprised to see that my hands had changed somewhat dramatically during the transformation. My delicate fingers had become tougher and thicker and each fingernail ended in a sharp talon. It was at that moment that an idea hit me. If I couldn't lift myself off the ground, could I perhaps take off from a higher altitude?

"Well, it's worth a shot," I told myself as I dug my left hand into the bark of the tree.

After I inserted my fingers into the bark, I dug my other hand in at a slightly higher position. I climbed up the scale of the tree with what upper strength I have and the support of my legs. I was thankful of the rigorous endurance exercises that I went through some time ago, otherwise I would have fallen flat on the ground. As I ascended higher, I saw the forest floor all around me and the trees that stood like ominous sentinels in the night. In the far distance, some fifty feet from where I was, the lights of the camp still gleamed like a cluster of fireflies.

Just as I was admiring the rare scenery, I sensed the familiar presence in the back of my mind. Thanks to Elektra's training, I had the ability to sense other's auras in the area, including my own mentor's. I knew this was my master. She was coming to find me.

"I have to hurry; she can't see me like this. Not now. I don't want to tell her yet," I whispered with fear in my voice.

I quickened my pace until I reached the top of the tree. The branches covered the ground below which gave me some cover, but that wouldn't be enough to hide my aura. I cautiously walked from the trunk to the longest branch out in the open. I was grateful that the branch was strong enough to support my weight. I prayed that this would work. I had no knowledge on flying, nor did I even have any experience in aviation. Sure, I flew on planes many times before, but this was an entirely different situation. If this doesn't go as planned…

"Alessa, where are you?" Elektra yelled as she scaled the forest below.

Her voice sounded close. Pretty soon she'll start searching from the treetops. I shook my head and denied any second thoughts that I had. With a determined look on my face, I jumped from my position and dove for the ground below.

Time stopped around me as I fell through the air. I did not know what this meant, but I knew I had to do this now, or die. I shut my eyes, prayed for my dear life, and spread my wings to their full extent. I was ready to meet my death.

The ground and I did not meet. My body was still in one piece. Was I alive? I opened my eyes and saw everything. The trees, the forest floor, I saw everything zooming right under me. I laughed in delight and soared upward to a higher altitude. I did not think that flying, no…this was gliding, would be so easy. These wings were made for flight, but not like a bird. I glided upwards and I saw the camp below me. I wondered what my fellow students and my masters would think of me if they saw me like this. Would Elektra still accept me? I shook off that thought and reveled in the moment now. As I glided, I felt new life course through me. This wasn't so bad, I was an entirely new person. However, I thought of when I would become a human again and if I did, would I be able to become the creature I am now again? I did not know until much, much later. I continued my trek across the skies, and enjoyed my time until the sun rose. What I did not realize was that these changes I went through were just the beginning of my journey. My journey of answering the one question that haunted my mind ever since I could remember: Who am I?


End file.
